Australian Antarctic Division: Leading Australia’s Antarctic Program

Winter has arrived at Davis

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This week at Davis: 4 March 2011

With the arrival of March we have experienced a change of season in Antarctica. For the past few days Davis has been blanketed with heavy snow, creating a landscape far removed from the dirt and rock to which many have become accustomed over summer.

For many expeditioners a frolic in the snow has become more of a career then a leisurely pastime. The new climatic conditions have also forced us to explore new opportunities for transportation to work. Nick Morgan our Davis Field Training Officer (FTO) was seen dusting off the skis and ramping up the moral fibre! Even the animal residents around Davis were getting in on the action, exploring the depths of powdery snow.

On Wednesday all this was soon swept up by high winds and blizzard conditions that prevailed for most of the day. The maximum wind gust recorded by the Davis Met Office was 79 knots (146 km/hr), while the 10 minute mean average was 59 knots (109 km/hr).

Davis Station in snow.(Photo: Andrew Bryant)

Who is this Cryptid, a Davis expeditioner or the abominable snowman?(Photo: Ashley Miskelly)